BT Email access when abroad

[geoffp]

I went on a cruise to northern Europe for a couple of weeks in October and even though using the ship's wifi and using data roaming while in port I was permanently locked out despite inputting the correct password. When I returned home I had to engage with BT as it wouldn't even recognise my password despite using BT Broadband through a BT router. Took two days to sort.

[pallavik]

Hi all, not sure whether this thread is still active, but if it's of interest to anyone, I'm currently in Southern Argentina - staying with wife's relatives, NOT hotels, Air BnB or other public access points - and my talk21 e-mail address has stopped working with all my e-mail clients, on laptop AND phones; it's currently working only via Webmail from the BTinternet page.

It's been a few years since our last previous visit - pre-pandemic - but I'm reasonably sure this is a repeat as I recall being unable to access it on our last trips to South America too; never managed to get to the bottom of the problem either. Relatively unfussed as for me this is a secondary e-mail that mostly collects spam, but there's also the odd useful e-mail coming through, so this doesn't stop being annoying.

[Andy_N]

---

@pallavikwrote:

Hi all, not sure whether this thread is still active, but if it's of interest to anyone, I'm currently in Southern Argentina - staying with wife's relatives, NOT hotels, Air BnB or other public access points - and my talk21 e-mail address has stopped working with all my e-mail clients, on laptop AND phones; it's currently working only via Webmail from the BTinternet page.

It's been a few years since our last previous visit - pre-pandemic - but I'm reasonably sure this is a repeat as I recall being unable to access it on our last trips to South America too; never managed to get to the bottom of the problem either. Relatively unfussed as for me this is a secondary e-mail that mostly collects spam, but there's also the odd useful e-mail coming through, so this doesn't stop being annoying.

---

You have effectively answered your own question, well comment. In that webmail works on your current access but mail clients do not - that means pop/imap and probably smtp are either blocked by your access ISP for certain IP addresses - e.g. UK ones, or that BTinternet is not allowing that access to (some Argentina ones).

This is a frequent report from different users from all sorts of non UK places.

[malchem]

Have used BT for years and travelled extensively and never had a problem UNTIL Monday 15 January. Then after 8 days of happy usage (Austria) everything stopped working as it should. Could receive Emails from external sources (hotels/airlines) but nothing from any addresses "@@btinternet.com" and couldn't send anything out. 

Issue resolved when back in the UK but talks with BT no help and it seems their help lines just repeat NOT DESIGNED for use outside the UK. Seems to me that they no longer want customers as the best bit of advice was use Gmail !

Something has changed as in over 35 years travelling overseas never had any problems - WHAT has changed and WHY and is BT phasing out "@BTInternet.com ?????

I am now nervous about future ability to use their system anymore as my travels continue and I need consistent access to Hotels/Airlines/Customers etc

Thoughts anyone ?  

[gg30340]

---

@malchem wrote:

Something has changed as in over 35 years travelling overseas never had any problems - WHAT has changed and WHY and is BT phasing out "@BTInternet.com ?????

---

Since 26nd October 2022 BT no longer offer an email service to new customers however if you had at least one BT email address before that date it would continue to work.

Take out of that what you will but my interpretation is that some time in the future BT, like many other ISPs will cease their email service. When that will happen and how much notice will be given is anybody's guess but it may be worth thinking about moving to a new free email supplier such as gmail.  

As regards your issue when abroad, was the problem using an email client/app and if it was was your email still working using webmail?

[Globalist]

I've been complaining direct to BT and here, that since travel restarted after Covid lockdowns, each time, and any way i use BT email abroad ( normally in Asia ) i get locked out of access to BT emails abd my BT Account. Is this anything to do with their connection with EE.

I just returned from 6 week trip to Asia. 2 countries. Prior to leaving UK i removed BT email addresses from my android phone. And during the 6 weeks i never opened Outlook (which also had my BT email address stored).

Abroad i only used Gmail webmail.

On return on 15th, opened Outlook and found it could not access the BT email.

So, looked directly to my BT account, to get the usual message - locked out of all access for suspicious activity!!! How can thst be, if I've not used any client programme or direct access or indirect access to BT from departure to return.???

Someone has suggested perhaps BT csn monitor or see my location even when abroad and even when I'm not accessing BT services. - Is that posdible?

[gg30340]

Depending on how you set up your BT email account on Outlook it could still be trying to fetch emails from the BT servers even although you never opened it. 

The problem has nothing to do with the merger with EE. This problem has been going on for years.

[malchem]

Original problems was using an I-phone plus a Nexus tablet (and others in party used I-pad and Samsung phones) so we did try via Webmail. All had same issue.

Couldn't receive Emails from other '@btinternet.com' addresses (from those same people in the party) but could receive Emails from other domains but could not reply to anybody. Sometimes I got Error message 553 and at other times it 'looked' like the Email had gone (went into sent box) but nobody received anything. 

Problem was mysteriously resolved as soon as back in the UK. 

[Andy_N]

---

@Globalistwrote:

I've been complaining direct to BT and here, that since travel restarted after Covid lockdowns, each time, and any way i use BT email abroad ( normally in Asia ) i get locked out of access to BT emails abd my BT Account. Is this anything to do with their connection with EE.

I just returned from 6 week trip to Asia. 2 countries. Prior to leaving UK i removed BT email addresses from my android phone. And during the 6 weeks i never opened Outlook (which also had my BT email address stored).

Abroad i only used Gmail webmail.

On return on 15th, opened Outlook and found it could not access the BT email.

So, looked directly to my BT account, to get the usual message - locked out of all access for suspicious activity!!! How can thst be, if I've not used any client programme or direct access or indirect access to BT from departure to return.???

Someone has suggested perhaps BT csn monitor or see my location even when abroad and even when I'm not accessing BT services. - Is that posdible?

---

Are you 100% sure that you don't have anything checking the email address, e.g. via Gmail? Or any other device? Removing the email address from the android phone may not completely remove everything - including possible mobile browser access (and any cookies ...)

Who is this "someone suggested"? How is BT monitoring your location when abroad?

[Andy_N]

---

@malchemwrote:

Original problems was using an I-phone plus a Nexus tablet (and others in party used I-pad and Samsung phones) so we did try via Webmail. All had same issue.

The simple answer is to use Gmail and not any ISP email address.